THE REPUBLICANS: THE CONVENTION IN NEW YORK -- THE JUSTICE DEPARTMENT

THE REPUBLICANS: THE CONVENTION IN NEW YORK -- THE JUSTICE DEPARTMENT; Subpoena Seeks Records About Delegate Lists on Web

By ERIC LICHTBLAU

Published: August 30, 2004

WASHINGTON, Aug. 29—
The Justice Department has opened a criminal investigation and is demanding records regarding Internet postings by critics of the Bush administration that list the names of Republican delegates and urge protesters to give them an unwelcome reception in New York City.

Federal prosecutors said in a grand jury subpoena that the information was needed as part of an investigation into possible voter intimidation. Protesters and civil rights advocates argued that the Web postings were legitimate political dissent, not threats or intimidation.

The investigation, conducted by the Secret Service, comes at a time when federal officials have begun an aggressive effort to prevent what they say could be violence by demonstrators at the convention this week and at other major political events. Large-scale demonstrations in New York began over the weekend.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation has questioned at least several dozen would-be protesters about whether they knew of any plans for violent demonstrations, and it has directed agents nationwide to identify possible criminal plots. Some Democrats in Congress and civil rights advocates have criticized the efforts, saying the inquiries have had a chilling effect on free speech.The accusations are likely to intensify with the disclosure of the subpoena regarding the Republican delegates.

''People have a right to be heard politically, and the names of a lot of these delegates are already public anyway,'' said Matt Toups, 22, a system administrator for the Web site under federal investigation. ''This is just part of the government's campaign to intimidate people into not saying things.''

A senior Justice Department official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the department was sensitive to First Amendment concerns. But when officials were alerted to the posting of the names and identifying information for delegates, they were concerned about the prospect that delegates could be harassed or become victims of identity theft, and they wanted to know why the information was posted, the official said.

''When you're confronted with something like this, you can't just ignore it,'' the official said. ''I think people would expect us to look into it and find out whether there is anything going on here that goes beyond the bounds of free speech.''

The Justice Department issued the subpoena on Aug. 19 to Calyx Internet Access, an Internet service provider in New York City, after a Secret Service agent asked the company to turn over information about postings on a client's site, nyc.indymedia.org. Calyx refused to turn over the information, citing privacy concerns, and a subpoena was issued.

The subpoena seeks subscriber information, and contacts and billing records for the Indy Media site. It says the information is needed to investigate possible violations of the federal criminal code barring efforts to intimidate, threaten or coerce voters.

The Indy Media site is run by the NYC Independent Media Center, which describes itself as a grass-roots group committed to using media tools ''for promoting social and economic justice in the New York City area.'' The site includes several lists containing the names of many delegates to the Republican convention, along with e-mail addresses, phone numbers and the hotels where some were expected to stay, as well as links to a site called rncdelegates.com. Most of the lists were posted anonymously or by demonstrators calling themselves the RNC Delegates Working Group. One list includes more than 2,200 delegates, or nearly half the expected total. In publicizing the information, organizers said in a posting that they were trying to supply groups opposed to the Republican National Committee ''with data on the delegates to use in whatever way they see fit.''

''The delegates should know not only what people think of the platform that they will ratify, but that they are not welcome in New York City,'' organizers said in a posting.

''This upcoming mobilization in New York is not about the delegates, it's about who and what is going to be affected by the Republican Party platform that these delegates will proudly put their name to and will ratify,'' the message continued. ''It goes beyond that, as we raise our voices and fists and proclaim that this rotten system of capitalist exploitation and imperialist domination must be swept away.''

The site includes a few retorts from backers of President Bush, with one message asking: ''where is the list of Democratic delegates so I can 'use it as I see fit?'''

Officials at the American Civil Liberties Union, which is representing Calyx, the Internet service provider, said they were aware of no postings that encouraged violence or intimidation of Republican delegates, and they said the site contained political dialogue and information that was protected by the First Amendment.

''We can't see any legitimate purpose behind this investigation, and it looks to us like another attempt to repress legitimate political dissent,'' said Ann Beeson, associate legal director for the A.C.L.U.

The Republican National Committee has declined to release the names of delegates, saying it does not want to invite harassment. A.C.L.U. officials said the names of delegates and details like which hotels they planned to use were available in the media and on Internet sites, including some state Republican Web sites.

Federal courts have traditionally set a high bar in deciding what constitutes threatening speech that goes beyond First Amendment protections, saying the threat of lawlessness must be specific and imminent.

In one significant case, a jury in Oregon ordered a group of anti-abortion activists to pay $109 million in damages after posting an Old West-style wanted poster, portraying named abortion doctors as ''baby butchers.'' But an appellate court reversed the award. Parts of the case are pending.

In another Internet case decided in June, a Saudi graduate student was cleared of charges that the Web sites he ran had provided material support for terrorists. The student argued he had little to do with creating the material that was posted.

In 2001, the Seattle chapter of Indy Media was served with a warrant by the F.B.I. demanding electronic records after officials said stolen material related to a free trade meeting and protests in Canada showed up on its site. The group fought the request and said it did not turn over any records.

In the latest flare-up, A.C.L.U. officials said they planned to turn over to federal officials on Monday the subpoenaed information on system administrators and registration for the Indy Media site. But that will not reveal who posted the delegates' names. Mr. Toups, a student at Carnegie Mellon University who volunteers for Indy Media, said the group -- by design -- did not require the names of Web posters and could not identify the people who posted the names even if required.

''We respect the anonymity of our contributors, and we don't track addresses,'' he said.

Chart/Diagram: ''Where The Delegates Are Seated'' The Republican seating chart places some delegates from nearly every state on the floor near the stage by splitting up the delegations. At the Democratic convention, delegations from swing states were clustered near the stage, with delegates from most other states located farther away. Diagram shows the Republican seating chart for the convention. The floor plan will change on Thursday morning to allow for a round center stage from which the president will speak.